From America:
The archbishop of San Francisco, Salvatore Cordileone, released a lengthy statement on Thursday, praising the late Senator Dianne Feinstein’s “civility” and recalling a quiet moment of kindness that, he said, illustrated her humanity.
“The senator was an alumna of the Convent of the Sacred Heart, and from those formative years she forged deep and abiding friendships with many Catholics,” Archbishop Cordileone said on Thursday, when a memorial service was held in San Francisco to honor Ms. Feinstein, who died last week at the age of 90.
The archbishop, known for his combative relationship with liberal political leaders—including former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, whom he barred from receiving Communion last year—said that Ms. Feinstein, first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992, “valued the contribution religious communities could make to the welfare of our city,” and gave an example of how she helped direct funds to the local Catholic Charities agency’s home for single mothers.
His statement:
As our state and nation mourn the passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein, I would like to express the sympathy of the Catholic community of San Francisco and assure her family of our prayers for her and for them. The senator was an alumna of the Convent of the Sacred Heart, and from those formative years she forged deep and abiding friendships with many Catholics. Tragic circumstances placed her at the helm of San Francisco in a time of great turmoil and anger. During her tenure as mayor, she had to face many challenges, and I am told by those who lived here in those days that she met them with courage, compassion, and poise.
She valued the contribution religious communities could make to the welfare of our city. I discovered that personally myself shortly after my arrival here in San Francisco as the Archbishop. Our Catholic Charities Agency had been running a home for homeless new mothers for which it was struggling to find the resources to keep open. I met with the Senator in her local office, and she immediately took an interest in the project, even going there to visit it personally herself. She helped us, even personally, come up with the funds to keep the program open.
While her politics did not always align with policies we believe best serve the common good, my experience demonstrated a trait she exhibited that we sorely need in our own time: courtesy. And this was demonstrated by her even in small acts of thoughtfulness. There was one such incident that did not take place on the public stage and it was not done for effect, but I learned about it from an eyewitness. It was in 1987, when Pope St. John Paul II visited San Francisco and met with people suffering from AIDS at Mission Dolores. There were other sick people present as well, and among them was a highly respected priest, Monsignor Donnell Walsh. He could not walk and attended in a wheelchair. After the gathering, Msgr. Walsh was brought out the side entrance of the basilica and was waiting by the curb for his ride. The sun had set and a chilly breeze had come up. Mayor Feinstein emerged from the church, and seeing the priest shivering in his wheelchair, greeted him kindly, removed her overcoat, and placed it on him.
Such a simple act of charity and thoughtfulness, and it was unnoticed by nearly everyone! From what I have heard from her friends, this was the character of Dianne Feinstein. May she rest in God’s peace.